Walruses change color from muddy brown to pinkish cinnamon. That’s because of their circulatory systems, which help them adjust to the surrounding temperatures. When warmer, their blood vessels expand to move blood to their blubber and skin so that the air and water can cool them. This makes them pinker. When colder, the opposite happens. Their blood vessels constrict to reduce the flow to their skin and blubber. This saves body heat and turns them browner.

Adult females are generally smaller than males, with an average weight of about 1,900 lbs and an average length of approximately 9 feet. Calves of both sexes weigh between 100 to 150 pounds and are about 4.5 feet in length.